


Like Me

by lunaofthemiste



Category: Battle for London in the Air (Roleplay)
Genre: GIVING OSCAR A BREAK, Gen, I don't think there is a plot, I wrote this because I felt bad for Oscar, Project Infinity AU, not really PI canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-11 07:13:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28347462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunaofthemiste/pseuds/lunaofthemiste
Summary: What do you do when the war ends, and the fight is over?
Kudos: 5





	Like Me

The rebel compound’s layout was confusing to Oscar as he walked around aimlessly. At the moment, he was looking for a place to think or at the very least a place to be alone and process everything without the others watching him. Currently, several of them were in the kitchen and common room, not quite celebrating but not quite mourning either.

Project Infinity, as everyone knew it, was finally over. The building was in ruins, everyone involved was either in the current rebel building, had fleed, or was dead, hence the uncertain mood downstairs. Oscar currently had very mixed feelings about the Project, mostly because he hadn’t understood the choices he made years before to stay until a few hours ago. 

The issue stemmed from Oscar’s recently returned memories and a previous lack thereof. He had assumed he was doing the right thing by working with Project Infinity, based on his prior knowledge, but his prior knowledge was based on lies and false memories placed there to make him complacent. These false memories had erased so much: the first serum injection result that labeled him as powerless, his job with the Tylers, finding out he did have abilities after all, and that terrible conversation with Valeria that dragged him back into this mess.

He had heard through the grapevine that Rebecca and Tristan were searching for him after all these years. Part of him wanted to find them. Part of him wanted to make sure they were all safe before he did.

As he mulled on these thoughts he climbed up the stairs, still unsure of where he was going. There was a door at the top of the stairs that was slightly ajar, so Oscar pushed it open and found himself on the roof of the compound. The cityscape was all ablaze around him, with all the neon lights illuminating the roof in a colorful glow. On the roof’s ledge sat a woman that Oscar recognized as Alyss Okänd, the first person to get the serum when it was called Project Eternity. Currently, she wasn’t disguised as she preferred to be - her hair was currently short, pink, and curly, which was blowing back in the slight wind that circulated around the roof. There were bandages on her face and arms as well, side effects from the attack earlier.

Of course, Oscar didn’t need bandages. His own powers - regenerative healing - made sure of that. Alyss wouldn’t have needed bandages either if there was still a healer, but there wasn’t anymore.

She looked up at Oscar, raising the bottle she was holding to him. When he didn’t move or say anything, she rolled her eyes. “I’m inviting you to drink,” she said, formally extending the bottle.

Oscar made his way over to her, cautiously taking the rum bottle out of her grasp. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted to be alone or not.”

Alyss shrugged. “I probably shouldn’t drink alone. You shouldn’t either.”

Oscar ignored the second comment and took a swig of the rum, frowning once he swallowed. “Is this not alcoholic?” He asked, examining the bottle.

Alyss shook her head. “The opposite. I never drink anything weak if I can help it.”

“Huh,” Oscar frowned. He hadn’t had anything to drink in years, but he hadn’t felt anything when he had the rum - was this another side effect of his powers? “Why are you out here?” He asked, changing the subject.

Alyss sighed, taking back the bottle. “It’s complicated,” she said eventually, after another long swig. “When you’re as old as I am, people...aren’t the same. Everyone around you changes faster than you do. I know I’m not the same person as I was fifty years ago, but those kids downstairs will change so much faster. There’s a reason I don’t have roots,” she explained.

“I thought Project Infinity was why you didn’t have any roots,” Oscar suggested. “I thought they were tracking you.” They were tracking everyone, but that didn’t need to be said.

She nodded. “They were, but it’s hard to narrow it down from every potential face on the planet. Those rebels downstairs were doing the same thing. They’re just lucky I found them first.”

“If it’s over now, you can have roots,” Oscar pointed out. “No one’s looking for you anymore.”

Alyss shook her head. “Not exactly. Sure, Project Infinity may be over, but there will always something else who wants something. Someone else who wants power and eternal life. I’m not going to let my guard down, and you shouldn’t either.”

“Why me?”

“Well, it’s not just you. I think everyone should be careful for a while, but that’s not my main point. I was thinking about this before, actually, after we met for the first time,” Alyss admitted, swinging her legs back and forth. “Your powers could work similarly to mine.”

“How so?” Oscar asked, leaning against the ledge. “I can’t shapeshift like you.”

“Not that,” Alyss shook her head, “I _know_ there’s no one like me. I meant the extended longevity part.”

“Oh.” Oscar hadn’t thought of that.

“I mean, you won’t know for a while, but it’s something to keep in mind,” she shrugged, looking out to the city.

Oscar mulled over what she meant. His abilities currently meant that any wound could heal and he’d be fine, but did it truly stop his aging? Was he effectively immortal now? He looked over to Alyss but he couldn’t get a read on what she was thinking. Eventually, all he could do was ask. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I never had someone to tell me. I got to figure it out all by myself,” Alyss answered honestly. “Besides, I owe you one.”

“Because you stabbed me?” Oscar asked dryly. The wound _had_ healed as they always did but it was a dirty trick nevertheless.

“What? No,” Alyss shook her head. “I stand by my move to stab you once I figured out your powers.” She was referring to the only fight they’d had, back when Oscar was firmly on Project Infinity’s side. Despite their size difference, they were evenly matched in skill. It was only when Alyss shifted into a copy of Oscar that he had realized who he was fighting.

“It still hurt,” Oscar frowned.

Alyss rolled her eyes. “That’s not the reason. I owe you for saving Esen. When the plan went off the rails I didn’t know what was going to happen to her.”

Oscar nodded, thinking back to the chaos the final battle brought everyone involved. He had only just had his memories restored when he heard that Dr. Jhandir, who was in charge of memory reconstruction, had taken Alyss - he would find out later that it was actually Esen, and the current ‘Esen’ was actually Alyss in disguise. When he heard, he offered to go and stop whatever was going to happen. No one questioned his motives. All he really managed to do was stop Dr. Jhandir with one immensely satisfying punch before anything could happen to Esen.

“It was the right thing to do,” Oscar said nonchalantly. “I thought it was you.” He also noted that he hadn’t seen Dr. Jhandir leave the building or the ruins before or after the explosion, and while he wasn’t very vengeful, he thought it was fair.

“Still,” Alyss insisted, standing up on the ledge. “You saved her from getting her memories wiped again. The last thing that kid needs is someone else messing with her mind.”

“Are you really going to stand up there?” Oscar asked skeptically. The bottle of rum was half-empty when he had it, and Alyss had drunk more since.

Alyss snorted. “You think a fall is going to be the thing that takes me out? After all these years?”

“You’re drunk,” Oscar said flatly.

“Good. I like being drunk,” Alyss grinned. There was something in her look that was both careless and mischievous, a far cry from the focused warrior he had fought what felt like years ago. “It helps me not think about the deep stuff.”

“We just talked about the deep stuff,” Oscar pointed out. “Or was that not deep to you?”

“Of course it’s deep. I talked about not wanting to put down roots because people are looking for me,” she explained. “Look, I stayed away from my family for years because of this, only to find out they were tracking my family instead, even through bullshit like blind adoption! You can’t win.”

“So what’s your point?”

“I don’t know,” Alyss sighed. “I haven’t had...relations in years. Family relations, obviously, I’ve had several...other relations. Esen is a good kid. I think she likes having me around, and I like talking to her. It’s a weird situation, like I’m her grandma but also her friend. I also think it drives her nuts that I act like this.”

“Doing risky things? It’s driving _me_ nuts,” Oscar gave her a pointed glance. “Can you please get down?”

“No, you get up here. If I stumble you can steady me.”

Oscar realized there was no fighting Alyss and sighed as he climbed on top of the ledge. It was a nice view, but he was preoccupied with making sure Alyss didn’t off herself by falling over. “Happy?”

“Yes,” Alyss smirked. “You’re taller than I thought.”

“I get that a lot. I don’t know why,” Oscar shrugged. “What are you trying to do?”

“I don’t know, give advice? You said I’m drunk, remember?” Alyss rolled her eyes. “Do you have roots, Oscar?” She asked, changing the subject.

“Roots? I’m not sure, to be honest,” he admitted. “I know my family thought I was dead years ago. The only people I was close to...I chose to come back here to protect them.”

“So…?”

“So I don’t know,” he sighed. “Do I find them but put them at risk or go out on my own?”

“I don’t know if you should go out on your own,” Alyss decided. “I mean, that’s what I did, and I still got screwed over by life.”

Oscar gave Alyss a look, confused by her answer. “I can’t figure you out.”

“Good!” Alyss explained. “I don’t want you to. People always think they understand you, but they don’t. The only one who knows what’s best for you is you, and if anyone tries to control you, kick their ass.”

“Sounds like your talking from experience,” Oscar commented, and Alyss rolled her eyes.

“Don’t get me started,” she said. “Listen, you’re asking me for advice, and I’m giving you some, but I also _don’t know what I’m doing_. Right now, I think I might just live in this brief victory, and you should too,” she grinned, handing him the rum bottle once more. “I’ll let you finish it off.”

Oscar couldn’t help but smile back as he took the rum bottle and finished it off. “Should I drop it down there?” He asked, holding the bottle over the edge.

Alyss tilted her head to look below, then nodded. “Bombs away!” She yelled.

Oscar dropped the bottle, which landed in a satisfying crash, sending small fragments of glass everywhere. He smiled back at Alyss. “How do you do it?”

“Do what?” Alyss asked.

“I don’t know,” Oscar said eventually. He hadn’t been able to find the right words to say.

Alyss laughed, “Now _you’re_ the one sounding drunk.”

“But I’m not!”

“I know,” Alyss winked, “and that’s the fun of it.”

“What?”

“Exactly. When you live as long as I have, you find the little things that make you happy. You’ll see,” she grinned, jumping off the ledge back onto the roof. “I’ll see you around, thanks for the company!” 

Oscar jumped off the ledge and watched her go, both amazed and confused by the whole ordeal. Alyss’s words had made sense, but he was still left torn on what to do now that Project Infinity was over. There was only one thing he knew for sure - he had a feeling he would be seeing a lot more of Alyss Okänd in the future.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun Fact: the song playing during Alyss and Oscar's original fight is "Does Your Mother Know?" by ABBA! It's not at all relevant to the story, but fun regardless.


End file.
